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 An open letter to Mr Frank Thomas Croisdale |
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芦笛
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加入时间: 2004/02/14
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作者：芦笛 在 罕见奇谈 发贴, 来自 http://www.hjclub.org
An open letter to Mr Frank Thomas Croisdale
Dear Mr Croisdale:
First of all, please excuse me for writing to you openly in response to your open letter to Ms Zhao.
I fully understand that your patriotic feeling has been hurt by Ms Zhao’s comment that America was the most barbaric country in the world. I also condemn the vicious attacks on America launched by People’s Daily, China Daily and so forth. To be frank, until I read your letter, it had never occurred to me that there are people in this world who would read that kind of junk and get upset as a result!
Still, if you may excuse me for saying so, I must admit I am quite upset by your open letter, as it appears, from the beginning to the end, to be rather patronizing.
As I see it, the letter was started in a regrettable way. If I remember correctly, you said something to the effect that an apology was what Ms Zhao most wanted right now. I do not know Ms Zhao at all, but I am quite sure that she would not be pleased by this kind of “apology”, since it sounded as if you were saying: “OK, if an apology is what you want, then I would give it to you, whatever the truth might be.” Do you really believe this is a sincere apology and is what she desperately needs now?
Then you continued by giving Ms Zhao a lecture on the American legal system, as if she was an illiterate. Unfortunately, I must point out that about a decade ago, China finally adopted the principle that “a suspect should be assumed innocent until he has been proven guilty”. Although to a large degree, this principle has yet to be put into general practice, it would be rather arrogant to assume that Ms Zhao did not know these basics.
Then you told Ms Zhao the defendant’s story. I fully agree that that gentleman should be assumed innocent until he has been proved to be guilty. But I would also like to point out that no one would plea guilty voluntarily. I regret to say, I do not find the defendant’s story very convincing.
First of all, brought up in a totalitarian country, the Chinese people in general fear the authorities, especially the law enforcement, a great deal. Secondly, a tourist, at the moment of setting foot on a strange foreign land, always feels vulnerable and consequently acts rather cautiously, if not timidly. Thirdly, I see no reason why Mr Zhao should attack a customs officer at all. What for? Just to get arrested by the authorities of a foreign country? Was this her purpose of spending a lot of money and going all the way to the other side of the Pacific Ocean as a tourist? Finally, being a woman, Ms Zhao is no match for a male officer in terms of violence. Therefore, it would have been very unlikely that Ms Zhao started attacking the customs officer on her initiative, unless she was absolutely insane.
I am not saying that the customs officer is indeed guilty. As I said before, whether he is guilty or not should be decided by the court. What I am trying to say here is that his story simply does not make sense at all. Don’t you agree, Mr Croisdale ?
Then, you told Ms Zhao that the American people regard themselves as good guys. I do agree with you on this matter, but may I take the liberty to remind you of the following facts:
First, like any other nation, most of the American people are good guys, but that does not mean that they are better than other nations. Neither does it follow that everyone in America is an angel and there are no bad guys among the American people at all. Otherwise, there would be no prison in the USA.
Second, I do agree with you that Ms Zhao should not generalize and blow up an individual incident out of proportion, accusing America of being the most barbaric country. Still, I believe that this comment, though impropriate and unacceptable, is nonetheless understandable. If you could kindly put yourself into her position, then you would see what she had gone through: the customs officer was the first guy she met in the USA, and yet she got beaten up for no reasons. Shocked, hurt and bewildered, it was only natural for her to make such an emotional comment. In a sense, the customs and immigration officers at the airports are all American ambassadors, presenting the first impression to foreigners. It is for this reason that this incident is most unfortunate and regrettable as it did darken the image of the USA.
Third, it is most outrageous that the Commie newspapers seized this opportunity to pour dirt on to the USA and its people as a whole. But I must say that those guys are just some overzealous and stupid running dogs kept by the CCP. They exploited this opportunity to demonize America, not because there were concerned as to how ordinary Chinese citizens were treated abroad, or because they really hated America, but because they were eager to please their masters and thus earn promotions or rewards, without realizing that a good Sino-America relationship would also be in their master’s interests. In this sense, Ms Zhao is a double victim and should not take blame for what others have done ostensibly on her behalf.
I would like also remind you, with due respect, that it is not very polite to address Ms Zhao by simply calling her surname without any title. Even though you mistook “Zhao” for her first name, it would still be impolite to address her like this. Don’t you agree?
Anyway, I believe that you could have written the letter in a more respectful and less condescending way, like this:
“Dear Ms Zhao:
I am sorry to hear that you have been injured in a very unfortunate incident. I understand you are not very happy with this country and its people. Although I know you do have reasons to make those comments, may I assure you that we are not as bad as you may believe. In fact, I personally know lots of good guys living in that area. If you could honor me with a visit at your early convenience, I would love to show you around so as to present you an opportunity to get to know those nice guys who represent decent American people. If you decide to come, please allow me to pay all the travel expenses for you, as I am willing to do my best to clarify your misunderstanding and thus strengthen Sino-America friendship. Yours sincerely so-and-so”
Don’t you think this kind of letter would be more friendly, less patronizing, less arrogant and thus less hurtful, Mr Croisdale? After all, she is a victim of some brutal officials. So I firmly believe she deserves a better treatment even though she did say something improper out of her tremendous indignation, frustration and disappointment.
With best regards.
Sincerely yours,
Flute Reed
作者：芦笛 在 罕见奇谈 发贴, 来自 http://www.hjclub.org |
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